Scenes from the Amigos School:

Scenes from the Baldwin School:

Scenes from the Haggerty School:

Scenes from the Morse School:

The morning welcome at the Tobin School:

CAMBRIDGE, MA [01/21/09]_ Tuesday’s historic presidential inauguration captivated the collective conscience of the world and the Cambridge Public Schools made sure to capture this teachable moment in our city’s schools.

At Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, each of the four “learning communities” viewed the ceremony in various locations of the high school. Learning Community “C” watched on a big screen TV with Principal Chris Saheed and Assistant Principal Robert L. Tynes in the main cafeteria. Learning Community “R” and half of Learning Community “S” watched in the movie theater atmosphere of the school auditorium.

The other half of Learning Community “S” watched in the media cafeteria and the adjacent Resource Center. Students gave a rousing standing ovation for Obama when he took the podium for his address that could be heard outside the school.

“In short, the entire CRLS community stopped and watched,” said Mr. Tynes. “It was incredible to look at the young faces of our students and see the joy, hope, excitement and intensity radiating from them. We are truly headed for a brighter future.”

At the King Open School, students and staff watched the Inaugural events projected onto a large, drop-down screen in the auditorium.

“There was great enthusiasm in our auditorium, mirroring the enthusiasm we saw in the crowd on the Washington Mall,” said Principal Timothy Groves. “There was auditorium-wide, authentic cheering when Obama first appeared on the screen and consistently when he was sworn in.”
Students were listening and attentive whenever there was a speaker; they stood when the crowd in D.C. was asked to stand, and they clapped for and cheered each speaker. “The visual and auditory effect of the broadcast made us all feel as if we were on the Mall with the live spectators,” said Groves.

At the Kennedy-Longfellow School, students and staff gathered in the library to witness history. One student measured high on the unintentional comedy scale, as the student told a teacher that he thought President George W. Bush was taking the oath “to promise not to be president any more.”

At the Morse School, third grade students in Mrs. Roderick and Mrs. Eid’s classroom began reading the book, “So You Want to Be President?” last week to expose children to the past presidents of the United States.

Prior to the Inauguration of our 44th President, students finished reading the story and summarized the “fun facts” they learned about our nation’s leaders. Some students became “Betsy Ross’s of our time, creating beautiful tissue paper American flags to go along with artwork of President Obama and American flag pins that the students made.

“Students also wrote in their journals about something they could do or change to improve the quality of life, living in America,” said Third grade teacher Elsa Roderick. “They wrote about topics ranging from global warming to stopping the war, from protecting the environment and endangered animals, to ways of assisting the poor and homeless. The highlight of the day, for many children, was watching history be made!”

At the Haggerty School, students, staff and parents gathered in the gym to watch the inauguration ceremony and also took time to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Students first watched Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech and a teacher read from the book “Martin’s Big Words.”

Principal Janelle Bradshaw asked younger students to create artwork that was reflective of the spirit of the day. Some drew pictures of Dr. King talking with President Obama. Older students wrote fictional dialogue between Dr. King and President Obama.

Principal Bradshaw attended the inauguration ceremonies in Washington D.C.. Upon her return, she said she will share her experience in the nation’s capitol with her school. The artwork and the writings will be displayed at the school’s February 13th assembly in the gym.

At the Baldwin School, Fifth grade students segregated themselves for the purpose of becoming aware of what segregation is and were then asked to create a class floor plan that "mixed it up" by consciously assigning diversity to each table group. Students even voted on the floor plan they wanted the most.

“They are still getting accustomed to the idea of working with people outside of your comfort zone. But it has become in the front of their awareness instead of in the background,” said fifth grade Teacher Debbie Logiudice. “The students watched, listened to, and read the "I Have a Dream..." speech by Dr. King. Then we transitioned into the inaugural procession. It was powerful,” Ms. Logiudice said “For homework the students are going to reflect of the past, the present, and the future of these events.”

Baldwin middle grade students produced a "Baldwin TV News" program that was shown in the morning before the inauguration to all Baldwin students.

“This news show was produced by seventh and eighth grade students,” said Mark Kelsey, the school’s technology integration specialist. “The short, student-produced videos included a biography of our 44th president's life, a video overview of the many people scheduled to speak and perform at the inauguration ceremony, another video looking at the election, another video on news for kids available on scholastic .com, as well as videos about Google Earth. (The show) was a colorful and well-produced overview with valuable background for all students to see before the actual inauguration.”

At the Peabody School, all students watched the inauguration and the President's speech with their teachers in their classrooms and participated in reflective activities about the importance of the day.

The fifth grade students and their teachers, Kathy Simpson and Benny Wilson, had an “Inaugural Luncheon” where students ate lunch in the classroom together with their teachers and classmates to watch the swearing in and the Inaugural address. The students wrote essays with the prompt: “On this day, I will remember..."

At the Tobin School, President Obama (okay, just a life size card board cut out) and Principal Seth Lewis-Levin greeted students as they entered the school to start their day. The students were personally invited to attend the school’s inauguration ceremonies in the auditorium later that day.

At the Cambridgeport School, students had the unique experience of viewing the inauguration from various community locations. Seventh and eighth grade students watched in the auditorium of the St. Paul AME Church Christian Life Center. Fifth and sixth grade students watched the event inside the Maclaurin Building at M.I.T., third and fourth grade students watched from the Boston Improve Theater in Central Square, and Kindergarten, first and second grade students watched from the comfort of the Cambridgeport School.

“This worked out really well for us,” said Assistant Principal Audrey Sturgis. “Our seventh and eighth grade students viewed the inauguration at St. Paul’s, which is an historically Black church, and many of the community members who gathered there to watch the inauguration were, in fact, part of the civil rights movement, and the students got to see first hand how this occasion really affected them. It was a terrific learning opportunity.”

At the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School, students watched in the auditorium, the library, and a classroom. Students applauded loudly when Obama first came out and throughout when he took the oath of office and gave his first speech as president. The third and fourth grade classes - who had held their own mock elections last fall - held a special viewing together where they wore red, white, and blue, and celebrated the election process as well as the historic election of the first African-American president.

“Even our kindergartners watched some of it and loved it!” said Principal Sarah Fiarman.

Said Amigos School Principal Deb Sercombe, "Students gathered throughout the building to view the Presidential inauguration. Most, settled in the auditorium to watch it on the large screen, making it feel like we were just an extension to all the folks on the mall. There was great anticipation for the event, as classes had been reading poetry from Langston Hughes, creating bulletin boards on Martin Luther King and talking about the election of our first African American President. Most importantly for the school, was the opportunity to be together, as a community, to share in the historic moment.

The level of excitement in the auditorium was such that all of the students cheered and threw their hands up in the air when they first saw President Barach Obama. And when he was sworn in, and made his speech, you couldn't here a pin drop. It was a great day for all of us!"

At the Fletcher Maynard Academy, students began gathering around television sets--not unlike many others around the city, the country, and indeed the world-- to share in the momentous occasion.  The Pre-K through second graders, and the sixth through eighth graders, watched the proceedings together in the school cafeteria, while the third through fifth grade students observed the event in the school’s library and engaged in rich discussions about the inauguration and its significance.

The school’s foundation must have trembled at least a little from the enormous sound made by students and staff at 12:15pm when President Obama was sworn in.  Some cheered, some shrieked, and some sat in stunned silence trying to process the enormity of the moment.  But there would be time for that later in the day; the teachers would provide time for further discussion throughout the day so that students could begin to understand what was accomplished that day, and what still remained to be.  

"The Fletcher Maynard students witnessed history on Tuesday," said Uche Amaechi, director of the school's Extended Day program. "From the rich and passionate conversations about what the inauguration might mean for their future lighting up the classrooms and hallways, it was clear that our students not only embraced moment, but engaged it openly, directly, and critically.  We are a community of life long learners at the Fletcher Maynard; Tuesday’s was a most amazing lesson."

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